by Griff Hosker
I felt a hand in my back as I dawdled. The guards had cleared a path for us through the maelstrom of humanity but it seemed to me that the people were backing away as these two barbarians were paraded through their city. I was taken back to the time when I had been captured and led through Harold One Eye’s village when everyone had stared at me. Then I had been afraid and hung my head. Now I stared back and examined the people we passed. There were women, and some men with deep blue eye shadow painted above their eyes and lips painted the same red as my war eyes. The hair of many was oiled and some of the women had it coiled above their heads like some black serpent. I touched the hilt of my sword for this felt like we had gone to the Otherworld; this was like nothing I had ever seen before. I had entered a new world.
The Hetaereiarch spoke to Tostig, as we ascended to a building which rose above all of the others. When he answered he looked at me. Tostig asked, “Did your men call you Ulfheonar?”
I nodded, “We are the men of the wolf.”
Tostig said, “Shape shifters?”
In answer I smiled enigmatically and I saw his hand go to his amulet. Tostig did not follow the White Christ. He spoke to the Hetaereiarch who nodded after he had heard what I had to say.
I could see that we were heading for the Imperial palace. There were warriors such as the ones around us and they guarded the huge gate. They stared belligerently as we entered. Once inside the heat of the city disappeared. It was cool, peaceful and vast. This was even bigger than the walls we had seen running along the sea. I wondered if I ought to leave a trail of breadcrumbs to find our way out and then I realised that we would only leave if the Emperor permitted it.
We entered a door and ascended a magnificent staircase. We reached a landing and we were taken into a room which had a table and six chairs. On the walls were magnificent curtains which depicted warriors fighting monsters. Tostig said, “We are to wait here. The door will be guarded!”
The Greeks all left and there were just the three of us in the room. Arturus laid his burden on the table and began to look at the figures on the tapestry. I knew what was going through his mind. How could anything so beautiful be made by man?
I turned to Tostig. “What is your story?”
“I lived in the north in the land of the Norse. We were raided by another drekar while our men were out hunting. I was taken to Frankia where I learned to be a servant. As I had knowledge of ships my master took me with him when he went to trade with the men of Hispania. We were captured by the Moors and were taken to Africa.” He shrugged, “I suppose I would have ended my life there had we not been attacked by a Byzantine ship. I was the only survivor. When I arrived here I was bought by one of the Emperor’s courtiers as a curiosity.” He pointed to his red hair. “They had never seen a red headed man before. They use me to speak with the men of the Rus that they capture.”
“The Rus?”
“They are like us and speak a similar language. They live even further north than we did and travel down the rivers where they raid. I question them before…” He left the sentence deliberately unfinished.
“Before they are executed?” Arturus turned at those words. I smiled at him. “And that will be our fate?”
Tostig looked unhappy, “I do not know. So many warriors have never arrived at the same time before. We have only had one or two prisoners at the most and they were usually wounded. They all wished to die with their swords in their hands.”
“And that was denied them.” He nodded. “I see, interesting. And this Hetaereiarch, what of him? He seemed almost like us.”
“He was a mercenary. He came from Italy and proved himself brave. The new Emperor likes him. He is not Greek.”
A number of the comments interested me. “A new Emperor?”
“Aye the Emperor Nikephoros,” he lowered his voice, “he took the throne from the Empress Irene. He rules now.”
“Did the guards and oathsworn of the Empress not defend her to the death?”
Tostig smiled for the first time. “The guards here are oathsworn to their pay and not their mistress.”
“You said the Hetaereiarch was not Greek, what did you mean by that?”
“The Greeks can be treacherous. The Hetaereiarch is a man of his word.”
That echoed the words of Josephus. This was a nest of vipers. I resolved to trust only myself until I had learned more. Tostig might have been Norse once but now he was tainted by the attitude of the Greeks. He had shown fear at tiny things. This Italian Hetaereiarch might prove to be an ally but I would have to judge him when I saw more of him.
“The treasures,” I pointed to the two boxes. “Are they valuable?” I opened the lids. We had just brought the bones and the eagle. The others I would hold on to.
He pointed to the bones. “They will be worth a king’s ransom if they are truly the bones of St.Peter. Here St.Michael is the supreme saint but the bones would be worth its box filled with gold.”
“And the eagle?”
He shrugged, “I do not think that the Emperor would find it valuable. He was the minister of finance but there are those who yearn for the glory of Rome. The strategos, Bardanes Tourkos, would pay a high price for it.” He hesitated, “However he would be just as likely to take it by force he is an ambitious and cruel man.”
“How do you know so much about the politics here?”
“The slaves in the palace live together and it is all we have to talk of. We know we will never leave and will end our days here. Knowledge of the politics of Constantinople and the palace can save our lives.”
I went very close to him and lowered my voice. “Then think on this Tostig the Norse do not betray me. I am you worst nightmare. I am Ulfheonar and you know what that means.”
He was shaking so much I thought that he would wet himself. There was not a trace of the Viking left in him. “I promise you I will not.” He fell to his knees, “Buy me Jarl and take me home. If I stay here I will lose my life to the next Emperor.”
I raised him to his feet. “A Viking does not kneel! If I can I will take you home. I just need to make sure that I can get home too.”
Chapter 22
We were left alone for some time until a guard came and we were summoned into the presence of the Emperor. We had to wait at a beautifully carved and decorated door. As we went in our swords were taken from us. Arturus looked ready to react. “Not yet, my son. It is to be expected.” I turned to the soldier who took them. I said to Tostig, “Tell him that if anything happens to them then I will rip his heart from his chest.”
I stared at the soldier while Tostig translated. He must have realised that I meant what I said for he nodded and spoke to Tostig.
“He says he will guard them for he can see that they mean much to you.” I watched as he placed them in a chest by the door.
The Emperor was seated on a magnificent throne atop a raised dais. All the trappings suggested that he was to be revered if not actually worshipped. The Hetaereiarch was on one side of the Emperor, a drawn sword in his hand, and a large warrior dressed completely in mail held a mace on the other side of the Emperor. Ten other guards, with weapons drawn, lined the small chamber.
He waved his hand for us to approach. When we were at the foot of the dais Tostig prostrated himself upon the floor. I looked at Arturus and we both gave a half bow. I saw the glimmer of a smile on the face of the Italian Hetaereiarch. The Emperor and the other soldier looked nonplussed. The Emperor said some sharp words. Tostig rose to his feet.
“The Emperor wishes to know why you do not kneel.”
“I am a Viking and I kneel to no man. I have no king to whom I owe fealty and I rule my own land.”
My response took them all by surprise.
“And where is your land?”
“In the north of the island the Romans called Britannia.”
There was a conversation between the three of them and Tostig turned to me his eyes pleading for me to behave. “Just translate everything I say and you
shall come with us.”
At my words they turned and the Emperor spoke again. “You and your son will be held hostage here as a surety to the good behaviour of your crew. If they cause trouble then you will both die.”
I laughed. The Emperor looked as though I had slapped him in the face. “I have ordered them to behave and so long as we live then your city will be safe. If anything happens to us then your city will be bathed in blood.”
When the words were translated the Hetaereiarch asked, mildly, “Are you threatening the Emperor?”
“Of course not. I am telling him of the consequences which would result from my death. We came here to trade and if you do not wish to trade then let us go and we will travel east.”
“You leave if I say you can leave.” If the Emperor thought to intimidate me he was wrong. I smiled at him and he appeared to be confused. The Hetaereiarch leaned in and whispered in his ear. “Where are these so called treasures you wish to trade?”
I nodded to Arturus who took them and laid them on the floor by the Emperor’s feet. The Hetaereiarch took the box with the bones and examined it. When he opened it the Emperor looked amazed.
“Where did you get this? Britannia?”
“No, we were attacked by African pirates. After we killed them we raided their town and found this.”
The Hetaereiarch looked amazed then. “You destroyed pirates and their town? And you only had one dragon ship?”
“It was all that I needed.”
The Emperor closed the box. “If I chose to keep this treasure without paying you there is little you could do about it.”
Again I smiled to disconcert him, “You could but I could lay a curse on you and after you had killed me my spirit could come back as a wolf and destroy all of you.”
He paled, “We do not believe in pagan curses and spirits.”
“Really? I thought your whole faith was based on the White Christ dying and coming back as a spirit.”
This time the Hetaereiarch had to cover his mouth to hide his grin. The Emperor nodded, “So you are not an ignorant savage as I was led to believe. You can play the political game I see. I will pay you for the bones although I do not guarantee that you will either live or leave here.”
I nodded, “It is pleasant here and I do not wish to leave just yet. I am keen to learn about your culture.”
“And this other box?”
I spread my arms, “We found this in Britannia. We thought it was gold but we see it is base metal. It means nothing to us but we were told that there were some who revered the symbol.”
The Emperor opened it and when the mailed warrior saw it his eyes lit up. The Emperor did not seem impressed. “It has no value to me.” He looked up as the mailed warrior took it out, “However, it seems that Strategos Bardanes Tourkos is taken with it. You may have a buyer.”
“We sell to any who have the coin, Emperor.”
I could see, as he translated the latest words that Tostig was feeling the pressure. He was translating exactly what I said. He did not like it for it was erring on insolence but he did it.
Strategos Bardanes Tourkos spoke for the first time and as he spoke I heard the authority in his voice. This man was used to command. The Emperor’s voice had not commanded; it had negotiated.
“I would buy this from you. What other items do you have?”
“We found a torc and something we were told was a collection of phalerae.”
“And where are they?”
“On my ship.”
“Then send for them and I will buy them.”
“We will fetch them when our visit is finished.”
“I could have you killed out of hand.”
“Strategos you could try but if you succeed you would never have the other treasures. Surely the few coins they would cost would be worth it. It would be better than risking death.”
As my words were translated he launched himself at me. I had angered his honour. I pushed Tostig out of the way. The strategos swung his mace at my head. I ducked and put my right leg out while I used both my arms to throw him to the floor. I had his dagger out and held at his throat before anyone else could move.
I only had a little Greek but I had enough for this. “Move and you die.”
I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up at the Hetaereiarch. He shook his head and raised me up. He spoke to a shaking Tostig.
“The strategos was a little hasty Viking Wolf. Pull in your claws.”
The strategos was helped to his feet. The box with the eagle had fallen when he had attacked me and now Arturus clutched it to his chest; his eyes glaring defiance at the strategos. The Emperor spoke to him. He nodded and then spoke to Tostig.
Tostig translated although I could hear the fear in his voice. “I will pay for the eagle.” I looked at him. “I swear.” I nodded to Arturus who gave the box to him. He clutched it, bowed to the throne and backed out of the room.
For some reason both the Italian and the Emperor appeared to find it amusing. The Hetaereiarch spoke through Tostig. “You have courage, Viking, but you have made an enemy of the general. The Emperor will pay your price but you will be our guests here for a few more days.”
I nodded, “Then I would suggest that you send Tostig here to tell my crew of the arrangement. It will make life simpler for your sentries on the wall and I would advise that you feed them. If they are hungry they may go looking for food themselves. You do not want a boat load of Vikings loose in your city!”
He nodded and smiled, “A full wolf is less likely to go hunting. We will do so.”
We were led away down the corridor and up another flight of stairs. We were taken to a small room with two tiny and narrow windows. There was a table and two chairs and on the floor were three straw mattresses. Tostig seemed relieved to be away from the throne room. “These are our quarters. I have been told to tell your crew what has happened.”
“Tell them everything that you saw and we did. Haaken is my leader, tell him and the others that we are safe and you will let them know if I need help.”
He looked surprised, “You trust me?”
“You have little choice now if I made an enemy of Bardanes Tourkos then so did you. The weird sisters have bound us together in their web. Wyrd!”
He smiled, “I have lived here so long that I had forgotten about the sisters. You are right. There are guards outside.”
“How many?”
“Two.”
“Then fear not for we can leave whenever we like if there are but two of them. However, we will stay for the spirits have not yet told me to leave.”
As a confused Tostig left I lay down on the mattress. It was true I had not heard the voices for some time. That did not worry me. I only heard the voices when I was in danger. The last time had been before the pirates had attacked us. I was about to close my eyes and enter the dream world when Arturus said, “Are we in danger here?”
I opened my eyes and looked at him. I sometimes forgot, because he had killed men, just how young he still was. “No, my son, I know where the swords are and there are two guards only. We are Ulfheonar and we could kill the guards, take our swords and disappear. The sentries on the walls are to keep men out not stop others escaping. We will see what the Norns have planned for us. If this is a cage then it is a gilded one.” I pointed to the table where there was wine, bread, cheese and some small green and black fruits which looked like tiny plums. “I will sleep and then we will eat.”
I do not know if it was the strange room or perhaps I had put the thought into my head but the voices came. At one time they had always been old Ragnar’s voice I had heard but it had been some time since I had heard him. Now it was just my mother and my wife whose sweet voices filled the dark places of my dreams. The voices were soothing as they sang to me. It was the lullaby my mother had sung me and Erika had used for Arturus and Kara. There were flashing images which randomly popped up behind their words.
‘Beware the knife in the night.’ A g
lowing candle appeared and then disappeared. ‘Keep our son close.’ A serpent slithered out of the darkness and then vanished. ‘Be the wolf’. Suddenly a wolf leapt at me and I jumped.
Then I woke. Arturus stared at me. “What is amiss?”
“I dreamed.”
“The spirits?”
“Aye your mother and grandmother.” I rose. I am famished. What is the wine like?”
He shrugged, “It is wine.” I laughed he was not used to such drinks. He smiled, “But the cheese and the bread are good.”
I held up one of the small green fruits. “And what of these?”
“I did not know what they were.”
I did not know either but I put one between my teeth and bit. It was slightly bitter and there was a stone within. I spat it out and drank some of the wine. The fruit I had tasted suddenly became more palatable and I picked up another one and cautiously but into it. The wine and the fruit went well together. I discovered that the bread, the cheese and the fruits combined to improve the taste of each part. The cheese was quite soft and salty. I thought, from the taste, that it might be sheep’s cheese. The Byzantines had not just given us a random selection of food. We were guests and not prisoners. Or at least we were prisoners who were being treated well.
I was not certain if Tostig would have eaten and we saved some for him. He arrived, by the light in the room, during late afternoon. We had been in the palace all day. Tostig reported to me first. “Your men were all set to come and rescue you,” he shook his head. “Are they all berserkers? The young one called Aiden counselled them and persuaded them to heed your words. They have been sent more food and they were busy preparing the ship in case you need to leave quickly.”